I'm on a journey with a set destination. Heaven! I want to journey well and bless those traveling alongside me. I don't want to sit - I want to make progress - everyday. But I know, I must feel the brush of His Robes, or I'll never make the climb. This blog will chronicle my journey, but more importantly, it will share my moments of reaching for the Robes of Christ.

Tuesday, April 17, 2012

"They will be like a tree..."

It rises above all the others, completely exposed to the winds that blow
hard across the tops of its fellow trees. I sat watching it for hours,
wondering how much i could learn from the silent sentinel if God were to
allow it to speak to me.
I believe God teaches us constantly in everything that surrounds us.
There's a lesson He can give through the dirty sidewalk, the grassy
field, the nesting mother bird, and even the towering lone tree.

So, I watch, i listen, i know my need ----- for more of my Abba.

Steve and i were back on Cumberland Island for our annual runaway to
this quiet place. We embraced the reality that this could be our last
trip --- moving to Kenya breaks the cycle of "annual" plans. It's
another thing to lay down. After all, how much can two arms and one
heart hold on to. He's calling us to "more" in another place.
With no computers, no cell access, no technology, few people and only
wild horses running about for an occasional distraction ----- this
island is a haven for "hearing" His still small voice.

From my perch on the beach, it felt as if the tall tree on the horizon
was speaking -- and it had much to say to me. Beside me was my Steve. As i pondered the distant tree, He had pulled his "Sword" (as he calls it). I was so moved. God, the maker of the roaring ocean beside us --- speaking to me through a tree --- as my husband poured through His unchanging Word. Oh how i love the way our Abba meets us.

All the trees surrounding the tall one, were warped and twisted under
the constant winds that blow off the ocean beside them. They seemed to
almost mass together, perhaps in an effort to offer support to each
other. I saw myself among those twisted, tightly woven trees. How
comforting they must surely be to each other.
When the winds come, they can hold each other up.
When the darkness comes, they stand together, not alone.
When the rains fall, they will share the life-giving waters,
and when the sun warms their chilled leaves, they will all shimmer together.

There's such comfort in companionship ---- even among bark covered brothers.
We forget don't we. We are all so very much like each other. The trees
all have roots, they need sun and water, they are covered in bark and
they all produce leaves that hang on their magnificent twisting limbs.
We too all have roots, we need sunshine and water, and we're covered in
the same tender skin. We might be wounded, we may have scars, but
hopefully our "limbs" are still reaching up towards the Giver of Life.
Limbs can reach higher it seems when fellow limbs help ease the blows of
life.

Intrigued by the tall tree, i wondered what its message could be. How
could the image of the towering loner bring a message to my soul from
the One who made us both.

And then it came like a whisper.

The tree was like those around it in almost every way --- except that it
had been created to be uniquely different. Its top branches waved high
above those surrounding it. It was not tall because of anything it had
done in and of itself, it was tall because the Creator made it that way.
And because of this...
The winds that came sweeping in from the ocean currents hit the taller
tree in a different way. There was nothing blocking the full force of
the winds on the towering limbs of the tree. But, the tree could hold
strong because the tree's root system was supported by the roots of the
trees surrounding it, and those many connecting roots held it firmly in
place. So while the winds hit hard and the tree may have felt alone, it
was not, it was surrounded and held by the embrace of those around it.
And it struck me, if the tall tree had eyes, it would be able to see
both the sunrise and the sunset from its high vantage point. It could
see both sides of the island. No storm would surprise the tall tree, no
boat landing on shore would go unnoticed. The tree was in a position to
see "more" because its line of vision was not caught up in the many
branches that surrounded it. Did the ability to see farther make the
tree more special? No. It simply meant the lone tree saw things those
near it did not. Did the taller tree think the other trees were wrong
for not seeing the same things it could see? Surely not. Each tree had
been given its position by the Creator,and each tree held tightly to the
one nearby it.
If the taller tree were a person, would it feel alone in its uniqueness?
Would it feel left out and odd? Nothing about the tree evoked that sort
of thought. Instead it looked strong and secure, held in the "arms" of
its closest companions.
Oh how i wish all people were as good to each other as trees...
Oh how thankful i am for those who are...
Oh how i wish i were a better "tree"...

The trees on Cumberland are known to be some of the most beautiful trees
in all the world. Nathanael Greene, Thomas Carnegie, Light-Horse Harry,
and Joe Kennedy are just a few of the famous names who have found
themselves drawn to them. Perhaps they too caught sight of the tall tree
surrounded by the strong trees holding its roots in place. Perhaps, the
silent tree encouraged them as well.

Being different doesn't matter.

Growing strong in the place and for the purpose we were planted does.

... and if we happen to be blessed with companion trees surrounding us,
then we'll find ourselves strengthened when the hard winds blow.

My memory verses for April ----

Jeremiah 17:7-8
“But blessed is the one who trusts in the LORD,
whose confidence is in him.
They will be like a tree planted by the water
that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes;
its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought."

About Me

Married to Steve, mother to Michael, Maggie, and Peter, daughter of Donald and Kathryn Glover, sister to Kathy Williams and Jeff Glover ----- follower of Jesus Christ, and life-long learner. I was an elementary school teacher for 14 years and then worked serving those preparing to go on missions trips to Africa. I've enjoyed free-lance writing for several years. Now, we serve in Kenya teaching Godly Principles of Marriage as we mentor and encourage couples to bless each other, bless their children and homes, honor God, and multiply goodness around them. What a life we are living... so thankful.